Springfield Updates
Dear Neighbor,
The legislative session just passed a major milestone. The end of April was the deadline for Senate bills to be passed over to the House, and House bills to the Senate.
I was able to pass 11 bills before this deadline. Those bills are now being considered in the Senate. I'd like to summarize each of them for you briefly, just to give you a sense of what I've been working on this year. Some of these I've mentioned in previous emails.
HB 115: Requires the Secretary of State to make corporate filing data public and transparently accessible
HB 117: Expands the Secure Choice retirement savings program to workers at every business with 5 or more employees
HB 118: Increases the damages paid to workers in cases of wage theft
HB 119: Creates a program where safe, unopened prescription drugs can be donated to low-income patients
HB 120: Allows student athletes to modify their uniforms to conform with the requirements of their religion
HB 121: Protects DREAMers from discrimination in the workplace
HB 275: Fixes the handling of over- and underpayments from the Chicago Teacher Pension Fund
HB 1744: Allows the family of municipal employees to collect death benefits if the employee died from COVID while working during the pandemic
HB 2878: Requires public universities and community colleges to collect data on how many students are also parents, to better serve that population
HB 3665: Allows for the early release from the Department of Corrections of inmates who are terminally ill or medically incapacitated
HB 3762: Makes technical changes to the landmark civil asset forfeiture reforms we passed several years ago
As you can see, these bills run the gamut, from criminal justice reform and workers rights to retirement savings and prescription drugs. And there's plenty more for us to do in the month of May, including passing a balanced budget; drawing new legislative maps; and finishing our transformative package of clean-energy reforms.
I'll have more updates as these measures keep moving. And as always, send along any questions you may have about the Springfield process!
Take care,
- Will
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District Updates
Our District Office is now open to the public! Stop by to say hello!
Utility Bill Assistance Program: Closing May 31!
To apply for utility bill assistance click here or call the Puerto Rican Cultural Center for application assistance at (773) 661-2304
Community Vaccine Clinic
On Friday, April 30 our office hosted a community vaccine clinic and vaccinated 853 residents from the Northwest Side! Click on the flyer below if you'd like to volunteer at our second-shot clinic on Saturday, May 22.
